Santa’s Helpers at Harvest Time make Christmas brighter for area families

Christmas is traditionally a season of joy, but for needy families the burden of finding gifts to bring joy to their children can be overwhelming and heartbreaking. Harvest Time in Fort Smith saw the impact providing families with gifts for their children around the holidays can have on their spirits, and set forth on an ambitious goal of providing more than 1,200 gifts to local families this Christmas.

“At Christmas, there are always people who are needy,” Harvest Time Community Impact Director April Phipps said. “We have traditionally just adopted foster kids, and we did that this year. We adopted 50 foster kids, but we have also been going out into the community to low-income areas and adopting whole families.”

With the addition of community families, Harvest Time has committed to buying presents for nearly 300 children — and there are still families on a waiting list.

“I have some moms that are literally calling me crying, ‘Can I get on the list?’” said Farrah Shoppach, marketing director for Harvest Time. “I just can’t imagine. I look at these gifts and I can’t imagine not having a gift for my child on Christmas morning, so the blessing these gifts are going to be to these parents is the true mission of Harvest Time: Reaching, embracing, engaging and growing.”

Parents or Department of Human Services helpers will be given four to six gifts for each child to open, and all come from lists of gifts the children themselves suggested. Buying gifts that will make each child feel special and listened to is important, said Phipps. “And, if the parents put all clothes on there we added a toy,” she laughed.

Crews of volunteers have been shopping for weeks, picking out the perfect presents for the kids on their lists.

“I think that the most important thing is just putting yourself in their spot — it really brings out the compassion,” said Kellie Patterson, one of the volunteer shoppers. With her cart loaded up with fashionable boots, three iPods, gift cards, hoodies and little boy T-shirts, Patterson beamed, selecting the perfect items, holding each shirt up against the others on the racks, making sure it was the best. “We are so blessed. We want them to have that, too,” she said, wiping tears away from her eyes. “I tear up just talking about it. Good lord!” she laughed, adding an Avengers sweatshirt to her pile.

Angelica Berrios, who was shopping with Patterson, smiled comfortingly and agreed.

“I came from Puerto Rico, and in my church we try to do this; we have a lot of children who have nothing. They don’t receive a gift all Christmas. And here, I can do this and give the children what they want,” Berrios beamed. “Oh my gosh, it’s like a miracle,” she went on, “It really is a miracle, so I want to do this in my church. I want to bless all these kids.”

Though shoppers and donors are integral to the program, the Christmas dinners the church will host to give out the gifts to the families also will require dozens of volunteers. There will be 55 people on hand to help with Saturday’s dinner for the community families, including two people at each table who will serve as ambassadors, making parents and children feel welcome and comfortable.

“I don’t want anyone to feel like, ‘Oh we’re helping you,’” said Phipps. “They’re our guests! I want someone they can sit and talk with, meet them, invite them back … and show them somebody out there cares, somebody knows where you are.”

Though over a thousand gifts have already been purchased, wrapped and bundled, the need is still growing, said Shoppach, and the gift collection will go on as long as there’s a need.

“I have 14 names of families on a waiting list” said Phipps.“Each one of them had a story, and if there is a way a present can come in and I could call them and say, ‘We have a gift for you,’ I’d love to be able to eliminate that waiting list.”

“We also still have Community Rescue Mission children, homeless kids who are not going to get gifts,” said Shoppach.

Between the waiting list and the children from the Community Rescue Mission, Harvest Time needs an additional 100 gifts, said Phipps.

“A lot of people have a heart to give, but they just don’t know how to do it,” said Phipps.

For people who fall into that category, Phipps and Shoppach recommend going shopping with family for some Christmas gifts. Harvest Time will be open today through Thursday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., accepting all donations and getting them wrapped and delivered to the families who need them. The church can be reached at 646-6001 with any questions.

Phipps, admiring a gymnasium full of brightly colored gifts and a crew of workers cheerfully sorting and tagging them, added, “Whether I get anything for Christmas, this is my gift.”